Stalker

After our lie in, L runs but I decline, due to the 'slight' cough I've now acquired. Mr sensible I am, as always. Instead I kick Doggo on the park but keep it quite short. He's not happy about that and looks very worried. I'm sure he's expecting a dumping. He needn't have been concerned because we all go over to my parents for Sunday lunch, him included. Even Son joins us.

After a pleasant lunch, my father even gets the wine out, we head home and then into town for this weeks film. It's been a bit of a debate about what to see, in the end we (slightly regrettably) decide against seeing Natalie Portman's bottom which is on view at the Screen Room as a supporting feature to the 'Darjeeling Limited' and instead opt for the 'Killing Of John Lennon'.

There's a rather temping Raspberry Wheat Beer from Milestone 5.6%, on in the bar which just has to be tried. It's odd but still nice.

Tonight we're downstairs in the Paul Smith screen with its stripy loveseats, which are not terribly comfortable. The film is the story of the events surrounding the murder of John Lennon by Mark Chapman (Jonas Ball). The film uses Chapman's own words and the actual locations, as it takes us through the lead up to the killing. The film gives you an insight into his background in Honolulu, a place Chapman is desperate to escape and to go and achieve 'something'. He comes over as a man constantly on the edge of madness and it is no surprise that he chooses to do something stupid. Rather than do the sensible thing and top himself, he chooses to kill Lennon for no reason other than that he feels Lennon was a bit of phoney. This chain of though is inspired, somehow, by J.D. Salinger's 'A Catcher in the Rye'. Chapman travels to New York to carry out his task where he even uses the identity of the book's central character, Holden Caulfield. If Lennon was a phoney then what does that make Chapman. He rings an 'escort' to spend his final night of freedom with, as Caulfield does in the book. He assumes he'll manage to meet and kill Lennon the next day, which he duly does when he eventually encounters him at his apartment.



I thought the film dragged a little because Chapman wasn't that interesting and nor was his life. I thought the story lacked depth. There didn’t seem to be much to tell about his background and we find out little about his relationship with his wife. He was just mad but not even interestingly mad. The film carries on after the shooting and actually gets better after the killing.

The film was interesting but not enthralling because it was not easy to identify with Chapman but that may have been because the film kept a good emotional distance from its subject and therefore did not glorify him.

In the end, Chapman just wanted to be famous. At this he succeeds and becomes the world's first celebrity stalker. The movie was made without the cooperation of Chapman or Yoko Ono. However I'm sure Chapman would be happy about this film because he wanted fame and this gives him more of it.



'I was nobody, until I killed the biggest somebody on earth'

We get home to some of L's famous slag which she says that I must refer to as healthy slag.

Now Christmas is over I can start counting units again. 26 this week.